Los Angeles is enjoying a hot dog renaissance

It's boom time for hot dogs in L.A. Pink's and Tommy's are going strong, with newcomers Dog Haus, Federal Bar, Slaw Dogs, Coney Dog and Papaya King raising the stakes.

November 10, 2011

(Richardo DeAratanha…)

"Mickey, make me a combo, will ya?" yells Coney Dog owner Mike Binder at a grill cook from his table midway across his bustling West Hollywood restaurant. Then he flashes a broad grin. "I've been waiting my whole life to have a restaurant, just so I could do that."

"That's the Rolls-Royce of hot dogs, right there," says Binder, who is better known as a comedian and director but whose passion for Detroit-style dogs has consumed him for the last year.

He's not alone. Los Angeles is in the midst of a hot dog renaissance, with a cluster of recent openings signaling a hunger for that most sentimental of meals: tender tubular meat in a bun covered with toppings, or naked except for mustard.